Touring with a traailer

Having toured with four panniers - and hated every head wind ( "gegen wind"
in Germany) which seemed to double the size of my front panniers -- and also
having the good fortune to "swap" loads with a German guy who I travelled
with for a few days on my trip down and up the Danube -- I have taken
delivery today of my BOB Yak trailer and shall take it out for its first run
on Saturday.

I have looked at these trailers for some time and when Gerhard suggested
that I might like to try towing his trailer for a day I was happy to do
it -- even though it was a heavier load than mine ( he had a wife with
him!).

His fahrad was fitted with front and rear racks as was mine and so there was
no problem of a change over.

I was a fairly instant convert and all of my reservations largely
disappeared during that day. Having ridden my velo for quite a while under
full load and on this years trip was on about day 7 -- the change in the
handling of my velo was fantastic. Of course, going up hill was still hard
work but my velo (a much modified Dawes discovery 501 -- a hybrid) felt so
much more manageable -- as it does normally on my daily home runs. It was
also much easier ( and less dangerous) to mount and especially dismount
after a long day.

All in all I was very impressed.

Until my trip from the source of the Rhein down to Rotterdam, in May/June
next year, I shall tow it most days on my training and shopping runs. I also
suspect ( and hope) that I shall be just that bit more visible to the
blind/deaf /SMIDSY British motorist ( Sorry Mate I Didn't See You) -- being
a bit of an unusual sight -- I haven't seen one in UK yet!

Anyway I can't wait to get it out for its first long run on Saturday.




--
Trevor A Panther
In South Yorkshire,
England, United Kingdom.
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www.tapan.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk

Until my trip from the source of the Rhein down to Rotterdam, in May/June
next year, I shall tow it most days on my training and shopping runs. I
also
suspect ( and hope) that I shall be just that bit more visible to the
blind/deaf /SMIDSY British motorist ( Sorry Mate I Didn't See You) --
being
a bit of an unusual sight -- I haven't seen one in UK yet!

I met a chap called George Brown from Preston in Bristol with a Thorn
Rohloff whatsits towing a Bob Yak trailer. We rode together through the Wye
valley before parting company at Monmouth the following day. He's currently
doing the ultimate End to End ride from Tierra del Fuego to Alaska. I never
got to try pulling the trailer but did get to try the Rohloff hubbed bike
when i stayed at his p[lace in Preston on my way through to JOG from LE.

Don't count on being more visible......

Pinky wrote:
Having toured with four panniers - and hated every head wind ( "gegen wind"
in Germany)

You need to watch out for the "fahrt wind" as well...

Until my trip from the source of the Rhein down to Rotterdam, in May/June

When passing through Basel, stay on the right-bank (decent cyclepath
most of the way) and just before the Mittlere Rheinbruecke, get onto
Rheingasse (parallel to the path) and seek out the Fischerstube - it's
a tiny brewery that does about the best beer in world, foods' good,
too.

next year, I shall tow it most days on my training and shopping runs. I also
suspect ( and hope) that I shall be just that bit more visible to the
blind/deaf /SMIDSY British motorist ( Sorry Mate I Didn't See You) -- being
a bit of an unusual sight -- I haven't seen one in UK yet!

That's been my experience, the trailer forces you well into the primary
position, and the bright colours and size brings you to the motorist
attention (OK, my child trailer is a bit bigger than the BOB, at 87cm
wide and taller). It doesn't stop dangerous overtaking, but usually
the danger is shifted onto the oncoming traffic - they tend to have
passed me before they are forced to swing back in to avoid having to
kiss the air-bag.

in message , Pinky
') wrote:

Until my trip from the source of the Rhein down to Rotterdam, in
May/June next year, I shall tow it most days on my training and
shopping runs. I also suspect ( and hope) that I shall be just that bit
more visible to the
blind/deaf /SMIDSY British motorist ( Sorry Mate I Didn't See You) --
being a bit of an unusual sight -- I haven't seen one in UK yet!

I used to travel longish distances around britain with a trailer
regularly. Motorists do give you a significantly wider berth; like you I
found the bike handled better; and it allowed me to take a light racing
bike which was fun to ride in the evenings and on days I wasn't actually
travelling.

--
(Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

;; Perl ... is the Brittney Spears of programming - easily accessible
;; but, in the final analysis, empty of any significant thought
;; Frank Adrian on Slashdot, 21st July 2003

Pinky wrote:

blind/deaf /SMIDSY British motorist ( Sorry Mate I Didn't See You) -- being
a bit of an unusual sight -- I haven't seen one in UK yet!

Come to York. I went to Sainsburys once and parked my YaK next to another
Yak and a two wheeled trailer

Arhtur

--
Arthur Clune

Arthur Clune wrote:
Pinky wrote:

blind/deaf /SMIDSY British motorist ( Sorry Mate I Didn't See You) -- being
a bit of an unusual sight -- I haven't seen one in UK yet!

Come to York. I went to Sainsburys once and parked my YaK next to another
Yak and a two wheeled trailer

Better still, go to Munich - I've been in trailer-traffic jams on the
way to the beer garden, and they are much more pleasent affairs than
the motorised ones: no fumes, people joking and laughing. The beer was
better than Sainsbury's, too (mind you, Sainsbury "Octoberfest" is not
a bad effort).